Political Emancipation Research Articles

Marxism, Religion, and Emancipatory Politics, edited by GRAEME KIRKPATRICK, PETER MCMYLOR and SIMIN FADAEE

Marxism, Religion, and Emancipatory Politics, edited by GRAEME KIRKPATRICK, PETER MCMYLOR and SIMIN FADAEE

Queer in Cyprus? The LGBTIQ Movement, Normativity, and Resistance in a Changing (Trans)national Landscape

The literature on lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans*, intersex, and queer (LGBTIQ) politics has established the interplay between domestic and transnational norms and political tactics. However, knowledge about how local LGBTIQ activists understand, negotiate, and employ transnational LGBTIQ campaigns and tactics over time remains limited. This article builds on literature on the dynamics between national and transnational LGBTIQ politics. Based on interviews with Cypriot LGBTIQ activists, it examines how they adapt their perceptions and employments of LGBTIQ activism and politics when the transnational LGBTIQ movement interacts with local norms around gender and sexuality, and what the impact of this interaction is on the boundaries of LGBTIQ in-group exclusion and inclusion. The analysis of the interview material identifies three approaches toward transnational LGBTIQ politics that participants express over time: Ambivalence toward, acclamation of, and resistance toward transnational LGBTIQ politics. I argue that these different approaches show that the dynamics between national and transnational LGBTIQ activism and politics are not static and that the relationship between “norm” and “queer” is both messy and productive. I further argue that activists’ understandings, negotiations, and employments of transnational LGBTIQ campaigns and tactics in contentious contexts may reinforce and/or challenge national LGBTIQ politics’ normativization and queer emancipatory politics. Therefore, beyond contributing to discussions about the national–transnational relationship in LGBTIQ politics, the article demonstrates the importance of studying LGBTIQ activists’ views for gaining a well-rounded understanding of this issue.

The production of urban space and the geography of higher education in Sinop-MT

The city of Sinop has its origins in the occupation of the Brazilian Legal Amazon, encouraged by the federal government in the 1970s. Four decades of political emancipation later, Sinop is the fourth most populous city in Mato Grosso, standing out in the provision of various services. The aim of this study is to understand the centrality of higher education and its consequences in the production of the urban space of Sinop. The theoretical construct of this study was based on discussions pertaining to urban centrality and the production of urban space. Sinop contributes to the structuring of the urban network of the state of Mato Grosso, where the provision of services, specifically the presence of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) such as public universities and also private institutions, provide subsidies for such consolidation of the long-distance network, as well as influence the production of local urban space, modifying the current forms of this production as is the case of private appropriation of the real estate market , in which private spaces overvalue themselves to the detriment of public spaces. It is intended to contribute to the elaboration of policies in local public management and to the research esons that deal with the production of urban space in the regional context.

Regenerating Maya‐Mam ways of governing, Indigenous emancipatory politics in the age of the extractive imperative

AbstractThe literature on the recent exponential growth of the extractive industry in Latin America and beyond has documented the various processes through which this sector has been empowered to expand its frontier, as well as the strategies that affected communities employ to resist it. However, in this article we instead focus on how some Maya‐Mam residents of San Miguel Ixtahuacán understood and addressed the divisive effects of the Marlin Mine, which operated between 2005 and 2017 and was Guatemala's largest open‐pit mine. Drawing on ethnographic and oral history research, we uncover the resilience of Maya‐Mam ways of thinking and engaging with politics, in addition to the challenges they faced in their endeavors. As we will see, in the face of Guatemala's deeply engrained “culture of corruption,” the tactic of appealing to others’ conciencia (critical awareness and moral integrity) rather than offering monetary rewards to garner political support proved to be too ambitious.

Simone de Beauvoir the Memorialist: The Running Threads Connecting Us

This article considers the recent publications of French philosopher Simone de Beauvoir, and offers an overview of contemporary scholarship in Beauvoir Studies. Beauvoir’s canonization in Gallimard’s La Pléiade collection in 2018 is discussed, specifically Gallimard’s choice of Beauvoir’s Mémoires for these first two volumes. Exploring the imbrication of Beauvoir’s philosophy with her own lived experience, the article traces what Annie Ernaux describes as the ‘running threads’ connecting us, namely the ways in which Beauvoir’s legacy is interwoven in our lives today. Surveying recent scholarship highlights the pertinence of Beauvoir’s work to contemporary contexts on issues ranging from sexual violence, subjective agency and female subjugation to emancipatory politics and transnational feminist solidarities. Thereafter, the importance Beauvoir placed on self–Other relations is explored in relation to scholarship on Beauvoir’s epistolary exchanges, the publication of her lost novella Les Inséparables, and on Beauvoir’s philosophy of alterity and old age in light of the pandemic.

„Die Transvestiten haben das Wort“: the politics of gender variation, sexual distinction and morality in the transvestite magazine Das 3. Geschlecht

This article analyzes the Weimar-era transvestite magazine Das 3. Geschlecht (1930–1932), originally published by Friedrich Radszuweit, and assesses the affective and political qualities of the transvestite public culture that it organized. Scholars have shown how transvestite counter publics emerged in Germany alongside gay and lesbian collectives, spurred by the development of a queer press and urban social networks and tempered by a politics of respectability. As Das 3. Geschlecht shows, certain transvestites responded to the new publicity around transvestism by turning to modesty, privacy and inconspicuousness, not necessarily to public resistance or visibility as trans*. My argument explains this tendency toward gender conservatism, heterosexism, and middle-class conventions like domesticity and decency by emphasizing how this space operates as an intimate public, building on the concept by Laurent Berlant. Focusing on normative and ‘generic’ mediations of the experience of transvestism, I explore how the magazine’s public sought to shape the conditions for living as a transvestite in Weimar society, when the norms for trans personhood were still being conceived and disputed. Aspirational fantasies of gender and sexual normalcy and seamless belonging in middle-class society prove more significant to these mediations than oppositional or emancipatory politics.

Michel Foucault und Judith Butler über sexuellen Missbrauch und Inzest

Abstract Michel Foucault and Judith Butler on Sexual Abuse and the Incest-Taboo Starting from a critical discussion of Judith Butler’s definition of sexual abuse of children, the article analyzes Michel Foucault’s thesis of freedom of lust in premodern communities. Foucault’s main theory of »regimes of truth« opposed all naïve concepts of political emancipation and at the same time strengthens them. This is shown with a discussion of Butler’s theory of »compulsive heterosexuality« and her critique of the incest taboo. Foucault on the other side argued against a legal age of consent for children. In this both philosophers are on the wrong track.

The Cinematic Daydream as a Tool of Political Emancipation: Plus-de-Jouir, Aufhebung and the Parallax

In this research, we will start by exposing the paradox of ‘surplus enjoyment’ (the Lacanian plus-de-jouir), showing that its parallax structure of lack and excess is also applicable to the phenomenon of (surplus) repression. Linking his concept with the Hegelian Aufhebung, understood as a ‘failed negation of negation’ or a ‘negation of negation’ as failure, we will focus in detail on the central example illustrating our theoretical positions, which is Iciar Bollain’s film Tambien la Lluvia (Even the Rain). In analyzing its narrative structures that address the neocolonial reality, we will tend to approach indirectly, by reading the medium of cinematic narration, the ‘neocolonial question.’

Remembering Aronowitz

Abstract Stanley Aronowitz was the archetypical organic intellectual, one who maintained critical theory in its most substantive and adaptive form. Never one to succumb to defeatism or intellectual retreat, he maintained the grand narrative of emancipatory politics and education. His immense range of inquiry is best articulated in four distinct yet overlapping periods that exemplify the theoretical foresight and relevance for future radical speculation and praxis.

Toward critical demography 2.0

This paper reviews critical demography, revisiting its initial invocation as a paradigm focusing on the interweaving of power relations and demographic outcomes. Building on earlier critiques about demography's proclivity to positivist epistemology, I contribute to the initial proposition by framing demography as a power-knowledge, exposing the politics of demographic knowledge production. While critical demography remains marginal in demography, interdisciplinary demographers from allied fields have provided important contributions. Given the contemporary moment characterized by social and ecological upheavals, I argue for a recalibration—Critical Demography 2.0—which seriously reflects on the “critical” and works toward emancipatory politics, addressing issues of social justice and plight of marginalized populations. In moving forward, I argue for the need to think of praxis (demography for marginalized populations), epistemological diversity (mixed methods, critical quantification, and interdisciplinarity), and sustained engagement on critical themes. Critical geographers can offer an important role in recalibrating critical demography, by our emphasis on spatial politics and spatial justice, critical quantification, and community-engaged countermapping.

Che Lives! The Legacy of Che Guevara in World Politics

ABSTRACT This article introduces the discipline of International Relations (IR) to the ideas of Che Guevara and their legacy in world politics. As one of the most famous revolutionaries of all time, Che’s legacy is complex, multifaceted, and deeply political. His thought carries across many concerns central to IR theory, especially decolonialism and anti-imperialism, offering a unique radical Marxist-humanism focused on revolutionary praxis. This paper explores Che’s writing and speeches, arguing that the most important aspects of Che’s legacy do not reside in his contemporary romanticization but in Che’s emphasis on class analysis as a means to interrogate neo-imperialism in world order and thereby expose the possibilities for a genuinely internationalist (or cosmopolitan) politics of emancipation leading to a decolonized, self-determining world.

Rural politics in undemocratic times: Exploring the emancipatory potential of small rural initiatives in authoritarian Hungary

Constructing environmentally sustainable and democratic political regimes constitutes the most important political project of our times – an era characterised by the proliferation of authoritarianism and the growing effects of climate change. Through the case of Hungary, an example of a modern authoritarian regime, this article discusses how agricultural initiatives such as Community Supported Agriculture, permaculture, and small-scale and regenerative farming can help situate questions of sustainable rural politics into a broader agenda of democratic governance. Building on qualitative interviews conducted in Hungary and the literature on socio-environmental transformations, authoritarian populism, authoritarian neoliberalism, and emancipatory politics, our aim is to envision emancipatory rural politics grounded in democratic societal projects and sustainable ways of producing and living with the land. After laying out what we identify as the three rural pillars of the Hungarian authoritarian regime – unequal land relations, agricultural subsidies and agricultural commodity sales –, we argue for attention to what could become the rural pillars of sustainable democracy: emancipatory alliances, counter-knowledge claims, and emancipatory subjectivities. Efforts at building the latter aspects can help Hungarians (and others) reimagine democracy from the countryside, establish new collective relations, and embrace the unavoidable ambiguities of emancipatory rural politics.

Schiller on Aesthetic Education as Radical Ethical-Political Remedy

AbstractThis paper examines the iconic conception of aesthetic education in the work of Friedrich Schiller, with the aim of elucidating Schiller’s unique innovation of this notion in understanding i) the relationship between aesthetic and ethical value and ii) the transformative possibilities within a collective, social dimension of aesthetic experience. The paper provides an overview of the Kantian origins of Schiller’s aesthetic programme (Section 1). It then considers Schiller’s critique of the perceived failings of the Kantian and Enlightenment republican models of ethical value and political emancipation (Section 2) before turning to his positive alternative aesthetic programme (Section 3). The paper concludes (Section 4) with some evaluation and reflection on Schiller’s original contributions.

The Germs of Emancipatory Politics in An Inquiry into the Good

Due to the controversy surround his political war-time writings, Nishida Kitarō and his entire corpus has been accused of promoting and supporting Japanese imperialism. Despite the valid criticisms of his writings during the war-time period, Nishida’s early work in An Inquiry into the Good is not so easily interpreted as supporting nationalism. In fact, depending on the lens through which one reads Nishida’s early writings, one can even find the germs of emancipatory ideas that can easily be put in dialogue with other liberatory thinkers such as Marx, Kropotkin, and Adorno. In this article, by considering the pluripotentiality of the text rather than a hermetically sealed off nationalist reading of it, I reread the ethical politics in An Inquiry into the Good through an emancipatory lens, considering how Nishida’s thought could have been taken up in a very different post-1911 Japan that did not move toward authoritarian militarism. Furthermore, I argue that the ambiguity surrounding his early political writings is consistent with his resistance to authoritarian ethics and his emphasis on the autonomy of the individual.

RECLAIMING POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS AUTHORITY: A CRITICAL STUDY OF WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN MAINSTREAM POLITICS IN PAKISTAN

Women account for over half of the global population, yet women are politically marginalized and underrepresented in third-world countries. Long-standing conventional structural and socio-economic difficulties hurt their mobility, socialization, political and electoral engagement, and participation in decision-making forums. They cannot make significant changes to socio-political trends because of their limited effectiveness. Their political emancipation was weakened and domesticated by Pakistan's traditional patriarchal mentality and the emergence of Islamic extremism. Although women in Pakistan have overcome the obstacles above and increased their representation in Parliament, they still have a bit of a way to go before actively participating in the decision-making process. Over time, there has been a growing realization that the only way to achieve a gender-balanced society that addresses women's issues is to encourage greater participation of women in governance structures. There are significant differences in women's political participation in diverse parts of the globe. This study examines the reasons for the increase in the number of women in legislatures in other parts of the world, focusing on South Asia and presenting the case of Pakistan. This study focuses on the political participation of Pakistani women. The Pakistani Parliament in 2002 now shows the highest level of feminine representation in the country’s history. The study examines how Pakistani women benefit from their numerical superiority in Parliament, whether women are "agents of change" or "agents of change," and whether these alterations are driven by women or triggered by external factors. This study examines the challenges women face in Pakistan in overcoming political marginalization and recommends creating a more comprehensive and representative civilization.

Disability policies, transnationalism and policy diffusion: ‘Asocial’ models of inclusion for children and youth in low and middle-income countries (LMICs)

This paper examines the advances made by low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in the inclusion of children with disabilities and youth within mainstream policies on education, employment, health, and social care provisions and the implications on their outcomes. Theoretically, this paper advances critical disability studies and addresses stigma and discrimination as barriers to progressive social policies. It also critically examines the diffusion of the social model of disability, which finds expression in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Methodologically, this paper uses latent class analysis (LCA) to analyse clusters of LMICs, regarding the adoption of social-legal provisions as stipulated by the CRPD. Finally, the paper concludes with a paradigm shift within the sociology of disability towards a sociology of enablement within the fold of emancipatory politics that addresses stigma and discrimination.

‘Spreken is zoo moeilijk niet’

‘Speaking is not that difficult’. Meeting culture, political emancipation and the women of the ‘s-Hertogenbosch branch of the Vereeniging voor Vrouwenkiesrecht, 1908-1926 Based on the ‘s-Hertogenbosch branch of the Vereeniging voor Vrouwenkiesrecht, this article examines the local meeting culture within the Dutch women’s movement around 1900. The presence of women on the political stage in the late nineteenth century was not evident. How did they learn to take their position? Local gatherings of social-political movements, such as the suffrage movement, offered women an important place to learn (public) speaking and develop their thoughts and opinions. Meeting procedures played a central role in this: how does one give shape to new voices and build a professional association? This article links up with the shift in the early women’s movement historiography from a focus on national leaders to local political organisation and the perspectives of ‘ordinary’ members. In addition, the focus on women’s debating culture offers a counterweight to the conception of the late nineteenth-century assembly as an almost exclusively male domain.

Ontology as ideology: A critique of Butler's theory of precariousness

Ontology as ideology: A critique of Butler's theory of precariousness

Domination, social norms, and the idea of an emancipatory interest

Domination, social norms, and the idea of an emancipatory interest

Building Social and Political Awareness through Cinema: The Case of Dahan

Feature film holds a significant position in Bangladesh filmscape. However, only a few of these films are aimed at raising social and political consciousness among the audience. One such film is Dahan (Affliction), directed by Sheikh Niamat Ali in 1985. Employing the theoretical lens of the Third Cinema, this study investigates how this film contributed in social and political awareness building. Therefore, this article examines the content and stylistic features of the film and concludes with the note that by providing a few alternatives to the traditional cinema techniques, the film successfully delineated the then socio-political reality of Bangladesh characterized by inequality, injustice and intellectual bankruptcy, and sought for social and political emancipation that helps audience enhance their social and political understanding. Social Science Review, Vol. 39(1), June 2022 Page 125-140